Facebook Reveals its VR Headset Oculus at $199

Facebook, The online social media, and social networking service unveil Oculus Go Portable VR Headset. The CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg, after realizing that his company’s headsets are too exorbitant, on Wednesday he revealed how the problem could be resolved.

During his keynote speech at Facebook’s fourth Oculus Connect virtual reality (VR) developer conference in San Jose, Calif, he paraded a solitary headset which does not require plugging in a smartphone or a cord tethering it to a personal computer like the Oculus Rift headset. It comes with built-in headphones for audio and has an LCD.

Paying $399 for Oculus Rift was almost nerve-racking for a casual VR user. Also, the Rift requires a high-powered PC in order to power the headset, and cables and wires that mean it are not handy enough for the users.

(image source: VentureBeat)

The Oculus Go will hit the market in early 2018. Other luxuries offered by the headset are its breathable fabrics and adjustable straps that the company claims will fit any face and can even be worn on top of the glasses. It is equipped with integrated spatial audio, optimized 3-D graphics and comes with a pocket-sized handheld controller.

“The strategy for Facebook is to make the onboarding to VR as easy and inexpensive as possible. And $199 is an inexpensive entry for a lot of people who are just starting out in VR. The problem is you will be spending that money on a device that only does VR and nothing else.” stated Gartner analyst Brian Blau.

Zuckerberg remains assured that the Oculus Go will evolve and restructure the way people interact and “experience life.” His vision cannot be disregarded considering the fact that Facebook now has more than 2 Billion users and plays an imperative role in how people communicate. He explained Oculus go as the “most accessible VR experience ever.”

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Swathi is a UX Designer & Illustrator with Index Studio. She works with UX/UI projects and also takes care of all the graphic and print design at Index Studio. She comes with skills ranging from design, illustration, typography to content strategy/creation and SEO. She loves her daily cup of green tea and in her free times works with watercolours, lettering, paper and doodle art.